


She's a He, Actually

by thefirstneonphoenix



Category: Batman - All Media Types, Teen Titans - All Media Types
Genre: Bruce can be a little dense, Coming Out, Gen, M/M, Sort of? - Freeform, heteronormativity is a disease
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-18
Updated: 2021-01-18
Packaged: 2021-03-17 03:55:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,240
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28842726
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thefirstneonphoenix/pseuds/thefirstneonphoenix
Summary: Dick tells Bruce about his relationship with Joey. It goes pretty well, all things considered.
Relationships: Dick Grayson & Bruce Wayne, Dick Grayson/Joseph Wilson
Comments: 9
Kudos: 78





	She's a He, Actually

The first thing Bruce noticed when Dick walked into the cave was how nervous he appeared. That generally meant that Dick had done, or was going to do, something incredibly stupid. Actually, scratch that last part. Bruce couldn’t think of a single instance where Dick had ever looked nervous before he did something dumb. He always rushed in with all the bravado he could muster, which meant that Bruce was about to hear about something that had gone wrong, or that he otherwise wouldn’t approve of. He steeled himself, and began running through a mental list, trying to predict what it was.

Dick sidled up beside his chair and leaned against the back.

“Hey B.”

Bruce gave a grunt of acknowledgement, taking in the lightness of his son’s tone. He couldn’t tell whether it was forced or not, which meant Dick didn’t want him to freak out. That in and of itself implied that there was something to freak out about. His fingers stilled on the keyboard and waited for Dick to continue.

“You’re paying attention. Good.” Dick rolled himself around the chair leisurely, until he was perched against the keyboard. Bruce stared at him expectantly. Dick took a breath, and said the last words Bruce had expected to come out of his mouth.

“I’m seeing someone.”

Dick spread his hands out, as if to say,  _ “Surprise! You no longer have any idea what’s going on in my life.”  _ Bruce blinked a few times in shock. He would have thought that Dick would have told him, or at least given some kind of hint that he had a crush, let alone that it was getting serious. He really shouldn’t have been surprised. Dick hadn’t been talking to him much at all lately, and he had come to terms with the fact that he was no longer a fixture in his son’s life. It didn’t mean it didn’t hurt. He opened his mouth. Closed it. Thought about what he wanted to say. 

Finally, he settled on, “How long have you been together?”

“About a month now,” Came Dick’s reply. Bruce hadn’t had any idea his son was dating someone, for a  _ month _ . “I wanted to wait and make sure it didn’t flop immediately before telling people.”

At least that indicated that Dick wasn’t specifically avoiding telling him, but Bruce still should have had some inkling of what was going on.

“Were you worried about it flopping?” If Dick wasn’t confident in the relationship now, that could indicate poor things to come.

Dick seemed to catch on to his train of thought, and quickly jumped to shut down any concerns Bruce might have.

“No. No more than usual, at least. But you know how things are. Sometimes you think you know someone, and then, well…”

Dick trailed off, as if reflecting on a personal experience. Bruce knew nothing about what it might be. Yet another mark against him in their relationship. But Dick was talking to him now, and he’d try to learn what he could while he still had the chance.

“Is it anyone I know?”

“No.” Dick sat a little straighter, voice taking on a hard edge, “And I’d appreciate it if you didn’t run any background checks.”

“Alright.” Bruce acquiesced. “I trust your judgement.”

Dick deflated at that, as if he had expected a fight. Privately, Bruce reflected that he may have been a bit too… disrespectful of his son’s boundaries in the past. Perhaps if he made an effort to be more respectful, Dick would be more willing to share information about his life. Bruce would have to investigate further. But before that, he did want to know a little bit more about whomever his son was dating. Dick was already moving to leave, so before he could, Bruce turned and called out.

“Do I at least get a name?”

Dick paused and turned around, smiling. “It’s Joey.”

“Joey.” Bruce repeated. “I’m sure she’s a lovely girl.”

Dick’s smile froze in place. “Yes. A lovely  _ girl _ .”

The emphasis Dick placed on ‘girl’ was strange. Bruce wondered at it a moment before realizing his mistake.

“Joey’s a boy, isn’t he?”

Dick gave a wordless nod.

“You’ve never dated boys before.”

“No. I haven’t.” He fidgeted a moment. “That’s-you’re alright with that, right?”

“Of course,” Bruce said quickly. “Of course.”

Dick nodded, but seemed unwilling to go.

“Do you love him?”

“I… I’m not sure yet. But I think- I think I might. If not now, then someday in the future, I will.”

“Then,” Bruce turned back to the computer, “I see no reason for me to disapprove of your relationship.”

“Um. Actually. There might be something.”

Bruce frowned. “What?”

“His father is kinda-sorta, y’know, Deathstroke.”

Of course his son was dating Deathstroke’s son. No one would want the Terminator for an in-law. Except for his son. His own insane, idiotic son had somehow managed to find and date, the son of his own worst enemy. Bruce shook his head. There was nothing he could do. If he tried to caution Dick, Dick would only drive his heels in more. There was nothing left to do but be supportive.

“At least you won’t need to tell him about the vigilantism.”

A panicked thought occurred to Bruce.

“He does know, right? You’re not just dating him as a civilian?”

Dick snorted. “I’m not  _ that _ dumb B. He met me already knowing both of my identities, he and his mother actually helped me save the rest of the Titans from Slade. I trust him.”

“So he’s a Titan himself now, I take it?”

“Yes, he’s a Titan now. Has been for almost a year. He’s been a good friend.”

Bruce made a decision and saved his work. It could wait for later. For now, he was talking to his son. 

“So it would seem.” He turned the chair around. “You are dating him for a reason.”

Dick let out a little laugh at that. “Yeah. Yeah I am.”

“If you want to tell me about him, I’d love to know more. Especially since I won’t be doing any of my own research.”

That seemed to be the right thing to say, as Dick immediately brightened and went to find a seat across from Bruce. It was the same chair he used to sit in every night when he talked to Bruce, back when he was Robin.

Dick launched into a description of the first time he had met Joey, and every subsequent highlight of their relationship that had occurred since. He began gesturing as he spoke, something Bruce thought he had grown out of. Apparently not. Dick talked until Alfred arrived to make them both go to dinner, and once they were at dinner, continued to talk, this time narrating the Titan’s various exploits to Bruce. 

Before he left the next morning, he turned to Bruce and said, “I’ve been meaning to ask. What exactly did you  _ think _ Joey was short for?”

“It could have been short for Josephine. Or some other strange name.”

“Most Josephines go by ‘Jo.’ Joey, on the other hand, is a very typically  _ masculine _ name.”

“Dick.” Bruce looked at him seriously. “One of your friends is  _ green _ . I expect the unusual from them.”

“Okay Mr. World’s-Greatest-Detective.”

“Good-bye, Dick.”

Dick laughed at him, but turned to leave anyway.”

Well. That had gone much better than Bruce expected. Perhaps he  _ did _ need to revisit the World’s Greatest Detective shtick.

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to my third fic of the day. I need to do my homework.


End file.
